


chemical reactions (namely of the redox variety)

by orphan_account



Category: Homestuck
Genre: F/M, John and Dave appear briefly but are otherwise unimportant to what goes on sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-04
Updated: 2014-06-04
Packaged: 2018-02-03 08:44:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1738376
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Highschool AU / Chemistry Class</p><p>His failure in chemistry was admittedly embarrassing in the face of a genius. Although he desperately could use the help, he could already foresee the events of their tutoring sessions: it would begin cordially enough until he somehow insulted her in the face of his own insecurity. Cue yelling and quite possibly the tossing (hurling) of very large objects (naturally aimed at him).<br/>__</p><p>Karkat is bad at chemistry and his friend asks Jade, his class' chem genius, to tutor him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	chemical reactions (namely of the redox variety)

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't been in chemistry class for like…four years so I don't remember the chronology of learning some of the stuff.  
> (we didn't even cover acidic, basic, and neutral conditions for redox reactions omg. I remember when I could do them in my head sigh)
> 
> Also my high school went by semesters with quarters, so we'd have quarter exams and semester exams, but grades would be sent out to parents at mid-quarter just so they'd have an idea of our grade standing for the quarter. 
> 
>  
> 
> Like I always write in these things, I'm a fan artist not a writer. I just like to dabble in writing sometimes despite how bad I am, so I'm sorry for how badly I write these two. 
> 
>  
> 
> (I was also totally not tempted at all to call this a "chemical romance" I am a stronger person than that)

 

Chemistry class, he concluded, was literal hell. 

 

Sometimes complete with fire, anguished screams, and everything. 

 

It was also hell on his GPA. Karkat could at least get down the basics, the difference between atomic mass and number, and he could even balance simple chemical equations. His memory was _awful_ beyond that. He failed nearly every test after the first couple of weeks. Drawing diagrams sucked for someone with no semblance of artistic coordination and he’d rather eat a rock than balance another redox reaction. Screw all those electrons.

(It didn’t help that his work and handwriting got sloppy as his frustration increased when he didn’t understand a problem, scribbled letters slanting across his work page and doubling back on itself.)

His friends could only take so much of his class time woes at the lunch table, he griped about anything most days anyway, until they finally intervened and suggested he get tutoring. 

“Everybody can’t be failing. There’s gotta be at least ONE smart person in your class,” John offered. 

“Of course everyone’s not failing, it’s literally just me. Everyone else is like a fucking sponge. Squish them down and all the teacher’s chemistry laced drivel will come seeping back out onto their tests.”

John pulled a face. “Gross for one. Second, like I said it can’t _literally_ be just —”

“ _I WAS BEING HYPERBOLIC YOU UNEDUCATED PISS COUCH_.”

Dave patted his back semi-sympathetically, “What period do you have chem?”

Chemistry was Karkat’s seventh period class, the worst way to end his school days. He told Dave as much. Dave hummed thoughtfully

“Isn’t Jade in your class? Chem’s her specialty, she’s got that shit on lock.” 

John perked up, “Yeah! Dude, if there’s anyone that wouldn’t be failing it’s her. She has an A in the class for sure.”

Karkat groaned. John wasn’t wrong. If there was anyone that could somehow get over 100% in a chem class that offered no extra credit, it would be Jade. She would definitely be able to help him salvage his grade. Except they never seemed to get along for more than five minutes. Not to say they weren’t friends; their friend groups coincided and they were capable of conversing, albeit with snarky undertones. They didn’t speak much in chemistry though. Karkat usually sat in the back, coming in just as the late bell rang and she sat attentively at the front. They disagreed constantly in English, the second class they had together, criticizing each other’s interpretations of poems or debating the thematic devices in the assigned text. More than once the English teacher had thrown them out in the hall for “consistent disruption of the learning environment”. 

“I can ask her for you if you want,” John said as he started to pack up for class. Karkat slumped down on the lunch table. 

“I don’t care. I simply do not care whatsoever. I will fail this class regardless because I lack all sponge qualities and I cannot regurgitate information like a mother bird feeding her gross weird fleshy offspring and I —”

Dave rolled his eyes. “Right,” he interrupted “and you certainly won’t care when mid-quarter grades are sent out.”

A high pitched wail echoed across campus. 

 

 

 

For once in his academic life, Karkat got to chemistry class early. His previous class, usually all the way on the other side of campus, met at the library which was right next to the science building. Plopping down into his seat at the back of the room he let out a sigh when he glanced at the whiteboard. Another review of redox reactions with an added challenge of neutral, basic, and acidic conditions. Great. Fantastic. 

“My services won’t come free you know.”

Karkat startled and smashed his knee on the underside of his desk. 

“Christ, Jade don’t do that!” Jade gave him a feral grin as she deposited her backpack on the desk next to his. “And don’t make it sound like that!” he hissed, sparing a furtive glance at the teacher. Jade snorted. 

“Don’t be a dingus. Anyway, I can’t accept money, but you can pay me in food.” He scowled. 

“You’re just _assuming_ I actually want help in the first place. Maybe I’m perfectly capable of securing my grades myself!” he shot back red-faced and indignant. 

“I like beef jerky in case you were wondering. Hamburgers are good too.”

He was about to respond with something incredibly snarky and smart, but the final bell (and her smile) cut him off. Jade remained in the seat next to his. 

Class dragged on for Karkat more so than it had any other day and the reason for it was clear. Jade Harley _never_ sat in the back of chemistry class and she most certainly did _not_ sit next to Karkat Vantas. Taking coherent notes was hard when he kept sneaking sidelong glances at the girl next to him. He almost would have preferred his normally stoned-as-fuck seat mate instead. 

His failure in chemistry was admittedly embarrassing in the face of a genius. Although he desperately could use the help, he could already foresee the events of their tutoring sessions: it would begin cordially enough until he somehow insulted her in the face of his own insecurity. Cue yelling and quite possibly the tossing (hurling) of very large objects (naturally aimed at him). 

Students scrambled to pack up as the afternoon announcements concluded. Karkat shoved his notebook into his backpack and shuffled out the door, exhausted from the class and unsurprised at having retained none of the information. He locked eyes with Jade, who was leaning up against the hallway wall. She pushed off the wall and walked alongside him down the hallway, dodging underclassmen as they made their way to the building’s doors. 

“So! When should we have our first session?” Karkat glared at her.

“Look, I really don’t need any help, thanks for offering.”

“Karkat, you have a 65% in the class. John seemed pretty convinced you needed help,” she deadpanned. She looked at him thoughtfully for a second before adding, “I’m not going to make fun of you if that’s what you’re worried about, I’m more professional than that.”

“WHY WOULD YOU INSINUATE THAT WAS SOMETHING I WAS EVEN REMOTELY WORRIED ABOUT.”

He would later deny how many octaves his voice climbed. Jade only spared him an amused look before they split ways.

“I’m free after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I can help you in the classroom right after everyone leaves for the day. Bring your homework so we have somewhere to start!” she called over her shoulder.

Well. That was the most normal and well-mannered conversation the two of them had ever had. Which, as he mulled the fact over, was unfortunate. For reasons he couldn’t quite place.

 

 

 

Even though the first tutoring day didn’t come until a week later it did nothing to alleviate the nervous flips of his stomach. He had a plastic bag full of beef jerky he bought at the nearby convenience store, the week’s homework assignment, and an iron will to succeed.

 

He was prepared. 

SO PREPARED. 

God, he was not prepared at all holy fuck. 

 

At the end of the day the teacher bid Jade and Karkat farewell as she followed the students out, making them promise to shut off the lights when they left. Karkat didn’t feel any better than he had at the beginning of the day.

Jade hopped out of her seat and clapped her hands excitedly. “Okay! So what exactly are you having trouble with?” Karkat tossed her the bag of beef jerky, which she caught easily. She opened one of the packages waiting for his response.

“Redox reactions.”

“What part are you confused about?”

“...all of the parts?” Jade blinked, and with a sigh bit into a piece of beef jerky. 

“Let’s get down to business then.”

They spent the next thirty minutes walking through the basics of redox reactions. Everything seemed clearer with Jade’s explanations. She was also surprisingly patient with him, praising him for understanding and demonstrating a concept or solving an example problem correctly with her instruction. Eventually they moved on to the homework problems which were significantly harder than the examples in the textbook.

Karkat hit a mental barricade after the third problem. He grunted in annoyance and leaned back petulantly in his seat. “How stupid is that? The textbook has all these simple scenarios and then the homework is all on stuff not even covered in the text!” 

“Don’t sulk, Karkat. Here, I’ll walk you through this one.” Karkat glared.

“Did you already complete the entire week’s homework assignment,” he didn’t even phrase it as a question. His stomach did a little flip when he was rewarded with a sheepish smile.

“I’m really into chemistry. Science in general.” He almost grinned at that. There wasn’t any need for the explanation. Jade Harley always had the best grades in science classes. She was the kind of person who liked to read books and articles on everything from chemical thermodynamics or stoichiometry to astronomy or cymatics.  

Karkat plowed on with the homework, his frustration growing each time he made a small mistake, although Jade efficiently rectified all his errors with a quick explanation. Still, his ears reddened every time she pointed out something simple (“You forgot about the electrons,” or “No, no, this is an acidic condition, not neutral,” or “Isolate the hydrogen first.”) 

He flinches and almost punches himself in the face when Jade puts a hand on his shoulder. Immediately he blushes, embarrassed at being caught off guard. His shoulder burns under her touch.

“I think that’s enough for today, we’ve stayed for about an hour.” He’d got caught up in finishing the homework that he didn’t notice how much time had passed. He sputtered for a second, voicing an affirmative as Jade shouldered her bag and started to head out. “Thanks for the food! I’ll see you on Thursday!” Karkat waves as she disappears out the door in a flash of her patterned green dress. 

He’s pleasantly surprised the day concluded without any arguments. And no bunsen burners or flasks thrown at his head was a definite plus. Karkat left school grounds with a smile on his face and a gentle thrumming in his chest. 

 

 

 

Good things never lasted long for Karkat. Second semester final exams were steadily creeping up. Even with Jade’s help his grades were constantly hovering on the border between a D and C, but if he royally screwed up on the final all that hard work would be out the window. To make matters worse, each tutoring day closer to exams was punctuated by at least thirty minutes dedicated to arguing. He was on edge with his test anxiety was getting the better of him and he couldn’t help the verbal jabs he sent her way. Regret always sat heavily in his stomach when they parted on tense terms because he never truly articulated how grateful he actually was towards her. It took a special kind of patience to sit down with someone as irritable and irritating as himself.

Jade pinched the bridge of her nose, scooting her glasses up into her hair and breathed a deep sigh. “Karkat, it’s the exact same problem as the first two. You’re not slowing down to read the instructions carefully.”

“Well sor _ry_ , not all of us can be masters of rocket science,” he snapped. The final exam was the next week and his confidence was currently burning in the lowest level of hell. He wished the test would burn there too.  

“It’s not rocket science!”

“Oh great, the Goddess of I-Could-Do-Stoichiometry-at-Birth is gracing us lowly science-ignorant heathens with her never-ending knowledge of —”

“Rocket science is physics not chemistry!” She was on her feet now, hands balled into fists at her sides. She looked electric and terrifying, her brow furrowed and teeth bared. “Stop feeling sorry for yourself just because you can’t understand one problem! You’re doing so much better than you were before, stop putting yourself down and stop trying to make _me_ feel bad for helping you!” 

Her voice echoed in the empty classroom. Karkat was gaping, eyes wide. In all of their arguments and disagreements he’d never seen her that angry. She deflated after a tense second and collapsed back into her chair. 

“Sorry.” She glanced at him briefly with a fire still blazing in her eyes, but did not respond. Instead she reached down to rifle through her backpack, pulling out several packets.

“Here are some study guides I made. They cover the topics from the beginning of this semester with vocab and practice problems and an answer sheet so you can check your work,” she said tersely as she deposited the packets on his desk. 

Oh, he fucked up bad. His mind went on autopilot if only to dispel the frown from her face and because the only other thing going on in his brain was _THAT WAS THE COMPLETE OPPOSITE OF EVERYTHING YOU FEEL YOU UNGRATEFUL IGNORAMUS FIX THIS._

 _“_ Sometimes I cry when I watch movies.” 

Jade gave him a funny look, “What?”

A pause.

“Romance movies.”

Another. 

“Any movie actually. I cry a lot in general, or that’s what my friends say. They’re all fucking liars though.” Jade raised her eyebrows.

“I cried at home after I got a 70% on the last chemistry test,” he confessed and blushed furiously.  There was a brief awkward silence until Jade choked back a laugh, his weird apology accepted. The inferno was gone from her eyes, replaced with dancing lights. He breathed an internal sigh of relief. The warmth that bloomed in his chest matched the warmth of the smile she bestowed upon him and he couldn’t help but return it.

“You called me a goddess you know,” her smile so bright and lovely Karkat thought his chest might burst. His flush deepened and spread all the way to the tips of his ears.

“Of science! Goddess of science! Strictly of scientific related science things,” he sputtered. She merely laughed and pushed his work paper back towards him.

Karkat returned to his work, feeling lighter and at ease. They sat in companionable silence the rest of the tutoring session, stealing glances at each other and hiding smiles and blushed cheeks. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The last day of school, of chemistry class, rolled around and final exams were handed back.

 

Jade held his hand and stroked his hair as Karkat sobbed huge ugly tears against her shoulder, holding his exam with a circled 77% in red pen. 

 

And if anybody saw her place a gentle kiss on his forehead, they never said a thing.

 

**Author's Note:**

> piss couch is my favorite insult I'm sorry.
> 
>  
> 
> apologies if the conclusion was incredibly and weirdly fast (as was the turnabout in the argument) but I literally had no idea where I was going with this as I hadn't planned anything out.


End file.
